SUs big lead disappears in Big East finale loss to Louisville

NEW YORK  Syracuse University handled Louisvilles vaunted pressure defense with aplomb and confidence the first half on Saturday night, building an impressive 13-point halftime lead.

But the final 16 minutes turned into a turnover nightmare for the Orange. The Cardinals turned up the heat, eventually caught up and then sprinted past SU for a 78-61 win in the Big East Conference championship game at Madison Square Garden, ending its 34 years in the league.

Second-seeded Louisville (29-5), winning its second straight title, overwhelmed No. 5 SU (26-9) with an unbelievable 49-16 closing run to deny the Orange a fifth Big East crown in a battle of future Atlantic Coast Conference foes.

Its certainly disappointing to play like that the final 15 minutes, SU coach Jim Boeheim said. But I think weve proved down here we are a pretty viable NCAA Tournament team, and that we can play with the best teams in the country.

SU turned the ball over just six times in the opening 20 minutes, and Louisville converted them into just seven points as it fell behind 35-22.

But the second half was a much different story. Fourteen Orange miscues became 25 points for the Cardinals. And that, for all intent and purpose, was the story.

We had handled their press well in the first two games (a win and a loss), Boeheim said. But I believe they are probably the best pressing team in the country. And to play them on our fourth day here, that was the toughest matchup we could have had.

Said Orange senior forward James Southerland: Our communication wasnt nearly as good the second half, and our rotations were slower. Then we just didnt make smart plays during their run.

Junior C.J. Fair led SU with 21 points, making 7-of-10 shots. But after taking 31 shots the first half, making 14, including six 3-pointers, the Orange managed only 18 second-half shots and went 3-for-10 from behind the arc as the offense stalled out.

We took so many bad outside jumpers the first half (shooting 26 percent), so the press wasnt effective, said Louisville coach Rick Pitino, whose team was in the finals for the fourth straight season. In the second half, we worked the post better, went to the high-low a lot, and got better shots. Consequently, we could get into the press more often. You can only press if you make shots.

After taking an impressive 13-point lead into the break, the Orange extended the edge to 45-29 just over four minutes into the second half after back-to-back 3-pointers by Fair and Southerland.

But Louisvilles pressure finally began taking its toll, helping the Cardinals run off 10 straight points and draw within six, 45-39, after a follow shot by Stephan Van Treese with 13:52 to play.

The Orange went nearly three minutes without a point before Fairs follow shot at the 12:51 mark. That, however, would be its only basket over the next 11 minutes as Louisville took control and SU came completely unraveled on both ends of the court for a telling stretch.

A Harrell dunk gave Louisville its first lead, 49-48, with 9:52 left to cap off a 20-3 run. And a Kevin Wares 3-pointer finished off what was a 27-3 spurt, boosting the Louisville lead to 56-48. SU had no answers the rest of the way on offense.

They switched their traps the second half, and we didnt adjust well, said SU sophomore point guard Michael Carter-Williams, who scored 11 points and had nine assists, but also turned the ball over four times. And we didnt get nearly the same shots the second half as the first. Give Louisville credit for how they came out on us.

The Orange continued its stellar offensive and defensive effort of the past four days with a dynamic first half again.

They seized an early 8-0 lead as Fair and Southerland hit 3-pointers, then really turned it on over the final nine minutes of the opening half after Louisville had cut the deficit to 17-15.

SU went on a 16-7 run over the last 8:52, paced by Carter-Williams who scored nine straight points, including a spinning runner in the lane and a banked 3-pointer.

SU, which shot 45 percent from the floor, also held a significant rebounding edge, 24-17.

Probably the worst thing for us was to be up that much at halftime, Boeheim said. It basically forced them to press even harder, and they did a great job of executing and we did not.

Even though it was not the ending it had hoped for, the Orange looked at the Big Apple trip as a positive experience.

Were back on track, and that makes everybody feel better, said senior Brandon Triche, who scored 10 points and made the all-tourney team along with Southerland. Hopefully, well keep taking steps forward after going backwards the last month.

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